September 19, 2011

Semi-Finalists: Romney v. Perry

I can't say I'm pleased about it but for the forseeable future, the GOP nomination battle has two possible winners: Perry or Romney. WaPo reports the two are a near-perfect embodiment of the two factions of the Republican party. Author Phillip Rucker calls it "the party’s upper-crust establishment" versus "the angry grass roots" and Massachusetts versus Texas. I'll boil it down even further - East versus West.

It is perhaps in the area of personal style that the two men are most different.

Consider how they approached the rite of eating a corn dog when they visited the Iowa State Fair last month. When a fair vendor handed Romney a vegetarian corn dog, he politely took it, turned his back to the cameras following him, took a delicate bite from the side and hurried along so he wouldn’t be photographed sticking the deep-fried foot-long in his mouth.

Perry, meanwhile, took a big bite of his corn dog, top first, photographic evidence of which raced around the Internet.

JG & JK: Might I propose a compromise? Though perhaps not orthodox Roman-numeral format, "VL" would be "fifty-less-five," and still make
"Very Large." Now comes the litmus test of formal purity versus pragmatic expediency.

The correct solution is for jk to issue a mea culpa. I saw what I wanted to see and propagated an error.

I considered telling jg that I was correct in some quantum universe where XL is the Roman numeral for 45.

Then I decided the best plan was misdirection. With JLo (didn't there used to be a hyphen?) shaking it all for Chrysler's parent company atop the page, surely this inconsequential item could roll off the page into obscurity.

While I said I'm not pleased that our choice will apparently be Perry or Romney, I cast a suspicious eye the way of His Roundness, Governor Christie. A number of unread emails in my inbox declare him "a liberal in conservative's clothing." I went a searchin' and found the Conservative New Jersey 8-part series on the Chris Christie Conservative Myth. From part 4:

So what was the point of Gov. Christie's fifteen state whistle-stop tour on behalf of Republican candidates? Ostensibly, it was to promote the conservative Republican brand, but given the Governor's political history, we suspect an ulterior motive. What could it be?

According to a New York-based Democratic strategist the answer is plain as day:

Christie "has built up a fair amount of political capital, and he's spending it consistently and constructively," said Dan Gerstein... "It's another sign that he's a smart politician, and his success is no accident."

Gerstein added, "First off, it shows he is a player beyond New Jersey. Second, it adds to his juice. He's in demand, which will make more people want him, and more people listen to him."

[...]

"The Republican Party will need moderate, independent-thinking leaders like Christie who can win in blue states, if they're going to compete on a level playing field," said Gerstein. "The Republican Party needs an antidote to Palinism."

"An antidote to Palinism." And what is "Palinism" but the putative face of the Tea Party movement that calls for limited government, lower taxes and restrained spending?

Fascinating. Perhaps Mr. Gerstein is able to discern what so many "Christienistas" cannot: Gov. Christie is a RINO in an ill-fitting Reagan suit who can see the 2013 White House from his porch.

The real tension for party control may one day take the form of Palin-Christie, not Perry-Romney. As I said, West vs. East.